Thirty Philippine officers suspected in an alleged February coup plot to topple the president will face a court-martial, the military chief said Monday. Gen. Hermogenes Esperon said he accepted the recommendation of military prosecutors that there was probable cause for the army and marine officers to stand trial on charges of trying to create a mutiny, violating military discipline and other related offenses. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has accused military "adventurists," communist rebels and their civilian financial backers of plotting to oust her in February, when she declared a weeklong state of emergency. ... http://abcnews.go.com

Cambodian and international judges are meeting to discuss the rules to be applied during the trials of the former leaders of the Khmer Rouge. The session, planned to last a week, has been preceded by discussions over the role of foreign lawyers and public participation in the process. The issue of whether the defendants can get a fair trial has also been debated. About two million people died during the years that the Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia in the 1970s under Pol Pot. Which of the former Khmer Rouge leaders will be prosecuted first may be announced before the end of the year. The UN-backed trials are due to start in 2007, and could mean that surviving leaders of the brutal Maoist regime - some of whom are still living freely - will be called to the dock. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6164262.stm

The United States lacks sufficient intelligence on Iran's nuclear facilities at this time, which prevents it from initiating a military strike against them, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has told European politicians and diplomats with whom she has recently met. Rice mentioned three reasons why the United States is currently unable to carry out a military operation against Iran: the wish to solve the crisis through peaceful means; concern that a military strike will be ineffective - that it would fail to completely destroy Iran's nuclear capabilities; and the lack of precise intelligence on the targets' locations. Bush and President Jacques Chirac of France met several weeks ago. Bush told his French counterpart that the possibility that Israel would carry out a strike against Iran's nuclear installations should not be ruled out. Bush also said that if such an attack were to take place, he would understand it....http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/789940.html

A senior House Democrat said Sunday he will introduce legislation to reinstate the military draft, asserting that current troop levels are insufficient to sustain possible challenges against Iran, North Korea and Iraq. "There's no question in my mind that this president and this administration would never have invaded Iraq, especially on the flimsy evidence that was presented to the Congress, if indeed we had a draft and members of Congress and the administration thought that their kids from their communities would be placed in harm's way," Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) said on CBS News' Face the Nation. Rangel, a veteran of the Korean War who has unsuccessfully sponsored legislation on conscription in the past, said he will propose the measure early next year. ...http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/19/ftn/main2199539.shtml?source=RSSattr=World_2199539

Prime Minister Tony Blair is flying to Afghanistan to meet British diplomats and soldiers following his visit to neighbouring Pakistan. Mr Blair will meet some of the 6,000-strong British force who have been serving in Afghanistan since the US-led invasion five years ago. On Sunday in Pakistan Mr Blair said he was standing by the government of Afghan leader President Hamid Karzai. "Nobody should be in any doubt at all about our commitment to Afghanistan." Mr Blair added: "We believe it is of fundamental importance to our own security to stick with it and see the job through." The prime minister has not visited British troops in the country since soon after the invasion in 2002. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6164252.stm

A classifed draft CIA assessment has found no firm evidence of a secret drive by Iran to develop nuclear weapons, as alleged by the White House, a top US investigative reporter has said. Seymour Hersh, writing in an article for the Nov 27 issue of the magazine The New Yorker released in advance, reported on whether the admin of George W. Bush was more, or less, inclined to attack Iran after Democrats won control of Congress last week. A month before the Nov 7 legislative elections, Hersh wrote, Vice President Dick Cheney attended a national-security discussion that touched on the impact of Democratic victory in both chambers on Iran policy. "If the Democrats won on Nov 7th, the vice president said, that victory would not stop the administration from pursuing a military option with Iran," Hersh wrote, citing a source familiar with the discussion. Cheney said the White House would circumvent any legislative restrictions "and thus stop Congress from getting in its way," ...http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/061119034024.d010tlyg.html